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Chelsea and Barcelona to swap 'keepers? Cech v Valdes

The Catalan media has been alight this week with stories that Jose Mourinho will look to bring Victor Valdes to Chelsea for free next summer, based on claims that Petr Cech will either retire or return to the Czech Republic to see out his days as a professional. Mourinho’s logic is purportedly that, while Thibaut Courtois is likely to be an excellent replacement for Cech, the Portuguese coach has always favoured having a veteran keeper around and Valdes would help to ease the Belgian in to his new surroundings.

Meanwhile, the Express reports that Barcelona are considering replacing Valdes – who becomes a free agent next summer – with Cech at the end of the season, opening up the prospect that the shot stoppers could even swap places next year. Which 'keeper is better and should Chelsea even consider Valdes when they have Courtois waiting in the wings? talkSPORT looks at the merits of Chelsea and Barca's respective number ones…

Aerial ability
Valdes doesn’t face as many aerial assaults as Cech due to the differences between styles of play in La Liga and the Premier League, but even then, the difference between the pair is striking. In domestic competition, Cech made 43 catches last season compared to 10 by Valdes, while the year before the Chelsea man made 26 catches compared to 15 by the Barca man. Even on a level playing field in terms of style like the Champions League, Cech makes more catches, with nine last season and 20 the season before, compared to eight and four by Valdes respectively. Clearly, Cech’s aerial game is more fine-tuned than the Catalan’s, so Chelsea would risk losing that safety net if substituting the pair.

Kicking
One perceived advantage of swapping Valdes for Cech is the addition of an excellent passer to the side, with the Catalan competent at playing the ‘sweeper keeper’ role. Statistically however, there isn’t a huge difference in the pair. Since 2008/09, in La Liga and the Champions League, the Barca man’s short passing accuracy has consistently hovered around the 90 per cent success rate, but Cech is surprisingly competent with the ball at his feet, if not as good as Valdes, completing around 80 per cent upwards of his own short passes in the same competitions. While it could be argued that Cech is more likely to play a simple short pass than attempt to pick out a full-back with a lofted short pass to the flanks like Valdes, the figures nonetheless show that when it comes to short passing, the Chelsea 'keeper does what is required of him by his club consistently well.

Moreover, in long passing, Cech far exceeds Valdes, completing around 30 per cent upwards of his long balls over the same time period used above, while Valdes has had as low as a 20 per cent success rate. Evidently, Chelsea play more long balls and have more forward players suited to that style than Barcelona, skewing the figures, but considering those very long balls are likely to be demanded of Valdes more frequently were he to come to Stamford Bridge, it could be tough for him to match Cech’s consistency.

Saving
Barcelona’s overwhelming dominance of possession means that Valdes faces far fewer shots on goal than most goalkeepers and, while that requires him to be extremely alert and ready to dive into action after long spells of relative calm, it also means we haven’t really had the chance to see how well he would cope in a more standard situation. The 'keeper himself has said that the increased number of shots he faces this season allows him to demonstrate his individual competence and the stats show that to be true. While last season his save percentage sat at 64.9 per cent in La Liga, this season it currently rests at 85.7 per cent, which isn’t far from the 87.5 per cent success rate currently held by Petr Cech in the Premier League. Those are promising signs for any team considering signing the Catalan, but the reality is that over the course of his career, his save percentage tends to sit at around 50-60 per cent on average in all competitions, compared to around 80 per cent upwards from Petr Cech. Would Valdes prove as decisive as the Cech over the course of a season if faced with more regular shots on goal over 90 minutes? That is far from certain.

talkSPORT verdict
Valdes is clearly an excellent keeper and so far this season is producing some of his most assured performances to date, but his strengths don’t necessarily coincide with what Chelsea require of a keeper. Bringing the Catalan in would mean yet another blow for Thibaut Courtois, who has avoided returning to Stamford Bridge due to a fear of sitting on the bench. In reality, the Blues would be better off banking on Courtois, whose aerial prowess and excellent reactions fit the Blues side perfectly, while Barcelona may prefer to sign Valdes' compatriot and former Camp Nou 'keeper Pepe Reina.

Who would you rather have in goal: Cech or Valdes? Let us know below...